MADISON - Wisconsin cheesemakers dominated the 2017 United States Championship Cheese Contest, sweeping the top three spots. Don’t expect similar results in the World Championship Cheese Contest here March 6 to 8. As you might suspect, when cheesemakers from around the globe weigh in, it gets considerably more difficult to grab the gold.

True, Emmi Roth USA’s Grand Cru Surchoix scored 98.88 out of 100 to claim the title during the last World Championship in 2016. But that was the first American-made cheese to top the biennial competition in 28 years. It marked the first time in the previous three competitions that an American cheesemaker even cracked the top three in the overall competition.

That’s not to say Wisconsin cheesemakers don’t fare well in the individual categories including the expected, such as cheddar, Colby and string, as well as the less obvious brick, feta and Havarti, to mention a few.